{"id":15907,"date":"2019-09-26T14:44:16","date_gmt":"2019-09-26T14:44:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.uwb.edu\/?p=15907"},"modified":"2023-06-08T18:27:46","modified_gmt":"2023-06-08T18:27:46","slug":"gilman-scholar-brekhus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uwb.edu\/news\/2019\/09\/26\/gilman-scholar-brekhus","title":{"rendered":"Gilman scholar learns about herself in India"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Heather<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

By Sean Park
\nAs a Seattleite, Heather Brekhus had some hiking experience. But walking up and down the Himalayas for seven hours during a study abroad trip tested her more than any Northwest range. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her guide mentioned toward the end of the hike that they were on the \u201cbaby version\u201d of the mountain. Brekhus thought to herself, \u201cIf that was the baby, I don\u2019t want to see the mother.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It would be only one of the many eye-opening moments of turned out to be a trip out of her comfort zone and into a new learning environment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Heading to India <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This past summer, Brekhus, an Educational Studies major at the University of Washington Bothell, was presented with the Benjamin A. Gilman scholarship. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fellowship is funded by the U.S. Department of State and gives students of limited financial means an opportunity to study or intern abroad. Started in 2001 and named after the late New York Rep. Benjamin A. Gilman, the program has received more than 100,000 applications, and approximately only one in four are awarded the honor. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Applying for the prestigious fellowship was a personal \u201cmountain\u201d Brekhus climbed, and getting the news she would be a Gilman scholar made her feel as if she\u2019d summitted. With this support, she headed to India as part of the study abroad program called Business India: Indian Society and Organizations in the 21st Century. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The group of 21 students and three faculty traveled through the cities of Agra, Bangalore, Delhi, Dharamsala, Hampi and Kochi. For three weeks, they learned about the features of Indian organizations and society and how they influence each other. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learning through the real world <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Although Brekhus is focused on education, she also has an interest in learning more about business. Her father founded a company called Brekhus Tile & Stone around the time she was born, and she\u2019s always been inspired by his passion and hard work. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Heather<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The group met with a variety of businesses throughout the course. After these visits, they would discuss the problems the organizations are facing and consider differences and similarities between nonprofits and for-profit companies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her professor would ask questions such as, \u201cKnowing what you\u2019ve just learned about this nonprofit, how could you transform this model into a for-profit business?\u201d The students collaborated on thinking strategically and devising solutions, a process Brekhus says she enjoyed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOne of my future goals is to start a nonprofit related to educating children outside of the classroom,\u201d she said. \u201cOur studies helped me understand the ups and downs of running such an organization and what it would take to accomplish my goal.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Empowering individuality <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The most memorable part of the trip for Brekhus was when the class visited a Parikrma school in Bangalore. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Parikrma Humanity Foundation, established in 2003, operates four K-10 schools and one junior college (grades 11 and 12) across Bangalore. More than 1,800 children \u2014 52% of whom are girls \u2014 are bused in from 99 slum communities and four orphanages to receive free education and three healthy meals a day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cParikrma\u2019s mission is to make learning enjoyable for the children, which ties closely to what I am learning at UW Bothell,\u201d Brekhus said. \u201cThe faculty at Parikrma intentionally focus on empowering every child to think and feel like an individual instead of just being part of a big class. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhile talking to the children, I could sense this individualism,\u201d she said. \u201cThey were excited to be there, to meet us, to share their story and to practice their English on us. Given their circumstances at home, I was really surprised by their enthusiasm and positive attitude.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Taking it all in <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Brekhus saw first-hand that the responsibility of being a teacher isn\u2019t just about class subjects. As she\u2019s learned at UW Bothell, being a good teacher means knowing about students\u2019 experience outside of the classroom, including their nutrition, living conditions and family structure. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt Parikrma, the founder stressed this, too. I\u2019m going to be very conscious of applying this when I start teaching,\u201d Brekhus said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meeting the students and seeing a vast number of people living on the streets also helped her gain a new appreciation of growing up in a first-world country. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, she made a decision to never leave food on her plate again. \u201cI don\u2019t want to waste anything,\u201d she said. \u201cFirst off, it\u2019s disrespectful to throw away something so valuable. Second, every day I saw starving people on the streets begging for food, so how could I look at my full plate and not finish it? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThese experiences hit me hard. Now I have a better realization of the privileges I have taken for granted all these years,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Coming home <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIndia was the best destination I could\u2019ve chosen,\u201d said Brekhus. \u201cI knew little about it beforehand, yet now I want to go back after I get settled in to my career.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brekhus received an open invitation from the Parikrma school to return and help teach at the institution. It\u2019s an opportunity she won\u2019t pass up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTaking the chance to study abroad was a great decision, and I\u2019m glad I went for it,\u201d she said. \u201cThanks to the Gilman scholarship, I was able to discover a lot about myself and grow in ways that I was not expecting.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI took a big step out of my comfort zone, and now I\u2019m going to challenge my students to do the same.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With a Gilman scholarship, Heather Brekhus studied abroad in India where she learned about business relationships and lessons about herself that the Educational Studies major can apply when she becomes a teacher.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_is_archived":false,"_archived_contact_email":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[202,211,204],"tags":[255],"school":[418],"class_list":["post-15907","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-campus-news","category-honors-and-awards","category-students","tag-study-abroad","school-school-of-educational-studies"],"acf":{"related_links":{"toggle_visibility":false,"link_1":null,"link_2":null,"link_3":null,"link_4":null,"link_5":null},"highlight_box":{"toggle_visibility":false,"title":"","content":"","button":null,"button_style":"angled-purple-button","button_screen_reader_text":""},"contact_type_1":{"toggle_visibility":true,"contact_title":"","email":"","phone":"","box":"","address_line_1":"","address_line_2":"","location":""},"contact_type_2":{"toggle_visibility":false,"contact_title":"","email":"","phone":"","box":"","address_line_1":"","address_line_2":"","location":""},"social_media":{"toggle_visibility":false,"facebook_url":"","instagram_url":"","linkedin_url":"","twitter_url":"","youtube_url":""},"blog_archive_sidebar_visibility":false},"yoast_head":"\nGilman scholar learns about herself in India - 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